I went to see 3 idiots early in the New Year on a Saturday morning. Opted for the morning show for three reasons: One, I was not partying so hard on the 31st that I would need to spend the next 2-3 days recuperating. Two: Judging by the size of the queue for advance booking, I did not even expect to get the tickets for an evening show over the long weekend. And three, and rather obviously, it was the cheapest show. By saying cheapest, I am being very relative, since the price of the cheapest movie ticket that day was actually higher than what a typical ticket would cost on another day. Hard to see why the movie would not gross as much as it has.
Let me bring in some more necessary digression by telling you that I am not exactly what they call a movie buff. You would hardly find me in the theatre as soon as the movie is released, unless its Harry Potter may be. I seek the opinion of people whose taste in movies matches that of my own before I even consider seeing a movie in the theater. I would probably allow more concession when it comes to renting a DVD, but that’s simply because I can walk away from the movie at any time if I am bored, without feeling guilty about having paid through my nose for the ticket. Even after all the reviews, and after the calculated risk of expecting to like the movie, I end up not liking the movies, and have in fact burnt my fingers real bad on some occasions. Which basically means you would rather place me in the critic or even cynic category when it comes to movies.
However, I completely believe that some movies ought to be seen for their ‘public image value’ (PIV). They can’t be missed if you want to uphold that ‘happening status’ in your social life. I decided that 3 Idiots was one of those movies with a high PIV.
The euphoria surrounding 3 Idiots was evident in the packed theatre with people of all age groups scrambling at 10 am to be equipped with popcorn and all the other paraphernalia that comes with seeing movies in a multiplex these days. I must admit the movie made for an entertaining 3 hours. The audience was compelled to laugh, cry, marvel, ogle, smirk, and all of it in the time. And as has come to be expected from a Rajkumar Hirani creation, people got out of the theatre feeling good.
I actually came out feeling a little ‘different’. Yes, movies must be entertaining. But perhaps my expectations about an underlying message are too high. What is the real takeaway from spending so much money and putting in so much effort into moviemaking? In this case what was it - Question marks on the Indian education system? Tips on how to rebel against stereotypical professors? Lessons in true friendship? Or a different take on how to derive more value from life? Did you really think it achieved any of this?
May be it is the whole genre of escapist cinema that fails to appeal to me. Five-Point Someone is a simple story, of ordinary people in a common setting. Yet it says a lot, yields more realism and ends pleasantly though not without trying to tie up all the loose ends. The movie on the other hand, enjoys creating the larger than life image to the extent of being melodramatic at times, stretches all characters to the extreme by either glorifying or falsifying human nature, and seeks that picture-perfect ending that one can never dream of in real life. (And not even give credit to the author – but let me get into that some other time.)
My verdict – I would give it 3.5 out of 5 for the excellent cinematography and Chatur’s speech. A definite one time watch, especially for the PIV.
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